The logistics of shipping products around the world is often complicated and freight forwarders can play an important role in making everything work right. While many may not realize the role of the freight forwarding services, it is something that is worth learning about.
What they are not
The first thing to learn about the forwarding services involves learning what they do not do.
- Not a shipping company – They are not a company that actually ships the products. They do not have the vehicles or the physical equipment needed to move any shipment from one place to another.
- Restricted by borders – They are capable of arranging for shipments around the world and can ship things from one country to another.
- Restricted by methods – They do not only ship products in one way. They are capable of shipping by air, sea and road or any combination of the different methods.
- Not a new idea – The first freight forwarding company was established in 1836 in London, England. It is not something that is a new idea.
What they are
Once a person learns what freight forwarding services are not, they can then start to ask what they are. In essence, they are the middlemen. They are the connection that a business or individual needs to a freight shipping company. There are many times when a product is being shipped that will create a logistical nightmare. It may involve different modes of transportation and it may travel through many countries. The forwarding services can help overcome the problems and arrange for a shipment to be delivered smoothly and on time. These are some of the things that the freight forwarders can do.
- Schedule – Items that are being shipped have to be scheduled. The pickup of the items, the transfer to different modes of transportation, the storage of the items while waiting for pickup or transfer and the delivery of the item all have to be dealt with. The services can help make this happen and track the shipment to make sure that it is on schedule.
- Paperwork – The challenge of shipping items around the world can be a paperwork nightmare. The forwarding services can handle all of the paperwork to make sure that it is in order and is the pr0per paperwork for the part of the world the shipment is traveling through.
- Fee and taxes – making sure that all fees and taxes are collected and paid can be vital to keeping the shipment on time.
Good forwarding services are the ones that can handle all of this so that the person sending the items and the person receiving the items have no idea of all of the difficulties involved in the shipment.